Boulder nonprofit battery backup grant selects its first recipients
Boulder taxes new solar and battery storage installations under a 2026 city ordinance, a law the Boulder City Council approved that year, and spends that money on a nonprofit battery backup grant meant to keep community buildings running through a power outage. The City of Boulder calls it the Resiliency Hub Pilot Program, and on September 10, 2026 the city announced it had selected 11 organizations, after an application window that opened July 9, 2026 and closed August 14, 2026.
Grant tier and advisory tier are the same 11 organizations split into 2 groups, not a separate count of a different total.
Show the numbers
| Total selected | 11 |
| Grant tier | 6 |
| Advisory tier | 5 |
Only 6 of the 11 selected organizations are in the grant tier, eligible for up to 50,000 dollars each toward a battery or a battery plus solar backup system, according to the city selection announcement. The other 5 get advisory services and portable battery equipment instead of a cash grant. Every one of the 11 still has to work with the city and Boulder County Partners for a Clean Environment to check what it can actually build before any money moves, so no organization has a system installed yet.
Each organization is eligible for up to this amount toward a battery or a battery plus solar backup system, pending a feasibility review with the city and Boulder County Partners for a Clean Environment before any money moves.
Show the numbers
| Boulder Housing Partners | 50,000 |
| Harvest of Hope Food Pantry | 50,000 |
| All Roads Shelter | 50,000 |
| Emergency Family Assistance Association | 50,000 |
| Center for People With Disabilities | 50,000 |
| Presbyterian Manor | 50,000 |
Why a Boulder food pantry wants battery backup for its next power outage
Harvest of Hope Food Pantry, a free grocery style food pantry on Pearl Street in Boulder that serves anyone regardless of address or housing status, is one of the 6 grant tier recipients. Its executive director, Chad Molter, said the pantry rescued about 250,000 pounds of food last year that would otherwise have gone into a landfill, and expects to roughly double that amount this year.
Last year, we rescued about 250,000 pounds of food that would have otherwise gone into landfills and redistributed it here.
Chad Molter, executive director of Harvest of Hope Food Pantry, one of the 6 grant tier recipients. Source 5.
The grant would let the pantry keep refrigeration running through a power outage instead of losing that food.
The tax behind Boulder power outage grants, and why the city says it matters
The money for the grant comes from a tax on new solar and battery storage installations in Boulder, made possible by the ordinance changes the Boulder City Council approved earlier in 2026, according to the city launch release. No source states a total budget for the program, and none is estimated here, since only 6 of the 11 selected organizations qualify for the full grant amount.
Deryn Wagner, a climate engagement strategist for the City of Boulder, said the program answers a grid that has grown less dependable.
The reliability of the grid has significantly diminished over the last several years, and it's something that we're working really closely with Xcel to address.
Deryn Wagner, climate engagement strategist for the City of Boulder. Source 5.